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Mavs 2009: Marion, Bass, Etc.
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I am angry at this hoop! (AP File Photo)
Well, Mark Cuban finally did it.
It’s not the Pau Gasol trade, because it’s not as if Shawn Marion is obviously the last cog in a championship contender. However, it is a pretty big fleecing, even if it’s a very explicable one.
Look at it this way. The Mavericks get a perennial, if aging all-star for the price of Antoine Wright, Devean George, and Jerry Stackhouse, players that I personally would have paid money to simply get rid of. The Grizzlies get a million dollars (three million, two to be used to buy out Stack’s contract). The Magic get nothing more than a trade exception, for which they inexplicably gave a conference rival their full mid-level exception back, by turning the Turkoglu signing into a sign and trade. Who says chivalry is dead?
The Raptors get Wright and George, whose value lies entirely in the fact that they are in the last year of their contracts.
So literally, the Mavericks landed Shawn Marion for not a single player, besides perhaps Wright—and then only until Demar Derozan stops falling down while trying to tie his shoes--who will see playing time for anybody, and by causing the redistribution of about five million dollars in wealth. That’s all.
Marion may not be what he once was, he may decline sharply this year, next year, any year---but that’s bloody brilliant.
This one is for those of you who forget that Mark Cuban, despite his on-court antics, is a really smart guy. You know how smart he is? When this deal seemed to be dissolving because it couldn’t be a two-teamer and the Raptors were anxious to sign Turkoglu before he changed his mind again, Cuban picked up the phone and called Chris Wallace, Memphis GM, the man who traded Pau Gasol for Kwame Brown, drafted, second overall, a center who has difficult scoring at all, and recently traded a serviceable enough wingman (Quentin Richardson) for a man who eats teams (Zach Randolph). That is ALWAYS a good idea.
Thank you, Hedo Turkoglu.
How much better are the Mavericks than they were last year? Well, that depends on whether they successfully sign Gortat or not, but consider this. Last year the most common starting lineup was Kidd, Wright, Howard, Dirk, Dampier. Two of those guys could score, two of them could play defense, no one could do both and only one of them was appreciably improved by the one thing Jason Kidd does well.
This year, you could have Kidd, Howard, Marion, Dirk, Gortat. Potentially four scorers, potentially three defenders, three guys who can go above the rim, and five above average rebounders. Let me show you the difference.
Will the Mavs, creaky as they are, still have trouble with teams like the Nuggets? Of course. They’re fast, and athletic, and young. However, instead of scoring at will on Dirk, Terry, Kidd, Dampier, and Barea, picture this. Billups slips Kidd—but Howard, back to his natural position as a 2, corrals him. He throws it to Carmelo, who is being blanketed by the athletic, long Shawn Marion—and when Marion needs a blow, beaten up by Quinton Ross. At the rim, Nene has to face Gortat, Damp, and Hollins (if the Mavs sign Hollins). They’ve got 18 fouls and completely different looks and they’re not afraid to use all of them.
Yes, I now think Dampier will be here next year. I could be wrong, but here’s something really interesting about Dampier’s contract.
Because of its structure, the Mavs can offer more next year in a sign and trade for him than anyone else can offer a free agent.
Insane, right? Here’s what I like: “with LeBron, Wade, and Bosh, a Sign-and-Trade can be six-years and $125.1 million, while an offer from a team with cap space could only be five years and $96.1 million.” Now, for that to happen, a superstar would have to say “I’m leaving,” and not “I want to go to New York”. Then the team could say, at least let us sign and trade you to Dallas. They can pay you more than you’ll get as a free agent anyway, and we get lots of cap space to go after someone else.
It’s a far-fetched scenario, but with the number of free agents hitting the market next year, not exactly ridiculous.
The last note is Brandon Bass—I don’t think he’s coming back. First of all, Orlando’s behavior in this trade is super suspicious. They essentially gave Toronto the chance to sign a couple more good players for nothing more than the trade exception. Unless. As they say.
Also Humphries, while not as good as Bass, is better than people think and plays the same position. He was a lottery pick, and is known as a good rebounder and energy guy. He was a McDonald’s All-American, and the 2004 Big Ten Freshman of the Year, leading the Big Ten in scoring and rebounding (22-10). He got drafted as a freshman, and is only 24, so he certainly may well have his best years ahead of him.
And third of all, my spidey sense tells me that in all likelihood, Otis Smith could change his mind about matching the offer for Gortat if he can’t sign Bass. I think Cuban knows that, and I think the trade for Humphries means he’s made his decision. Of course, if Smith doesn’t match in a week and THEN the Mavericks sign Bass, how disappointed would you be?
Exactly.
With this move, if they can get Gortat, the Mavs very likely move up to the third best team in the West, behind the Nuggets and the Lakers. Of course, I say that because I'm less impressed with the Richard Jefferson trade than others are. Still. They've also made it very likely that two hall-of-famers and a perennial all-star will retire in Mavericks uniforms. That's pretty good, huh? I'm still kind of mad at the team for failing to try anything like this for so many years, but better late than never.
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